A review of the production of Blood Brothers

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Introduction

A review of the production of Blood Brothers In year 10 we went to see the musical Blood Brothers by Willy Russell. We saw the play at the New Wimbledon Theatre on the 2nd of November 2006. It is a story about two twin brothers who are separated at birth but find each other again at aged 7. It shows the standard of living between the upper and working class of Liverpool in the 1960s onwards. The many characters in the play are: Mrs Johnstone (the working class mum), Mickey (working class twin), Sammy (brother of Mickey), Mr and Mrs Lyons (upper class parents) Eddie (upper class twin), Linda (friend of both twins) and the Narrator who helps tell the story throughout the play. It has many unexpected surprises along the way to keep in you interested. In the play the playwrite Willy Russell explored many themes and issues: class and expectations, unemployment and crime, superstition, loyalty and trust. The twins were altered by their different upbringings. Both went to separate schools, Eddie to a boarding school and Mickey to a state school. Eddies attire at school was a very strict uniform, tie up to the top button, socks to his knees, shoes polished and overall looking very smart. ...read more.

Middle

He had a very harsh Liverpudlian accent, which supports my thought that he was conscience the characters in the play were all from Liverpool. He wore a black suit with a shirt underneath which he didn't change from throughout the musical. It was a lot different from the other characters in the play. I think it was important that he dressed individually as he wasn't part of the production as a main character in the story line. It also helped the audience not to get confused. As well as the performances by the actors, the design and staging of the production also highlighted the themes and helped to communicate the status and class of the characters to the audience. The costumes of Mickey and Eddie were very contrasting. When they were younger Mickey was relaxed as a child whereas Eddie was very constricted, as he didn't mess about and have fun with the other little boys his age. This showed through their clothes. Eddie wore his knee-high socks and polished shoes whereas Mickey wore Sammy's scruffy old big jumper. This told us that Mickey's family couldn't afford to buy new clothes for him so he had his older brothers "hand-me-downs". Eddie on the other hand could afford new clothes and dressed smartly because he had the money to do so. ...read more.

Conclusion

At the end of the production special effects were also used when the gunshots were fired. Working in conjunction with all these aspects to create atmosphere and emotion was the music. Specific songs were used at key moments in the musical to emphasise a situation or emotion. The sad and emotional " Tell Me Its Not True" directly affected me. It was such a sorrowful song about a mother asking if it was real, that her two children had died. It was full of emotion and made the atmosphere very downcast and forlorn. I though the Blood Brothers was a fantastic musical and I would definitely like to see it again. I really enjoyed the beginning of the production as it didn't give too much away about the rest of the play and it kept you guessing. Blood Brothers is still relevant to people today as the different classes are still existent and your job still depends on your background. I saw the play before at the Phoenix Theatre in London and I thought it was much better there than at the New Wimbledon Theatre. I think that was because of the compactness in the Phoenix. It kept all the atmosphere together and as an audience we experienced the characters rollercoaster of emotions together. The overall message that the production left me thinking about was that you have to except people for who they are and that family is very important. ...read more.

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used is when the tension is being built up between Mickey and Linda. For about five minutes of the play the audience try to dissuade themselves that Eddie and Linda will not fall in love, however the flirting becomes more often and no matter how much you don't want it to happen it is inevitable that it will.

Then when the police and Mrs Johnstone enter this is where the drumbeat should begin. This will show the audience that something is about to happen but not clear on what it will be. When Mrs Johnstone walks down the aisle towards the boys the drumbeat should increase in tempo, and then suddenly stop when she stops.

Or could it be what we, the English, have came to know as class?" Russell uses a particular technique, which is a rhetorical question, to make the audience wonder and question if the superstition or the lifestyle which caused the twins death.

the middle classes don't understand, they just think they can throw money at it and it will make it better. When Mickey refuses Edwards money it's not because he doesn't want the money but he wants to earn it himself and Edward doesn't understand that to Mickey it's his pride that's more important than money.

Edward had been bought up to trust people in the story and also because he does not have responsibilities towards his family and worries about being able to afford for his baby he is still childish because he has got a lot of money which gives him a lot of freedom and the power to be able to anything.

Johnstone. Mrs. Lyons is also portrayed as a cold woman who doesn't show much emotion. She is very over-protective of Eddie and fears his bond with the Johnstones. Later in the play this fear becomes more evident and she appears as a troubled, weird character that appears to be losing control - this is evident when she attempts to attack Mrs.

size of the house which contrasted hugely to the impoverished street that Mickey lived in. These few simple props worked to great effect and really helped to highlight the Lyons luxurious surroundings. Throughout the play, set and lighting was successfully used to illustrate mood, place and time.

was the poor area where the Johnston's live and the stage left was the rich area where the Lyons's lived. This was all shown in the minor differences in the houses. Where one side had a lot of doors closely packed next to each other, the other showed houses with